TOPEKA - Stephen Six took over Thursday as the state's new attorney general, leaving the relatively low-profile job of district judge to enter the hurly-burly of state politics.

John Hanna - AP Political Writer

Thursday

Jan 31, 2008 at 12:01 AMJan 31, 2008 at 5:00 PM

Six was sworn in by his father, retired Kansas Supreme Court Justice Fred Six, during a brief ceremony in the Senate chamber. He took the oath with his hand on the family Bible with his wife Betsy at his side.

He replaced Paul Morrison, who was forced out of office by a sex scandal.

"I promise to serve with independence and integrity as I face the challenges ahead," Six said after taking the oath.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, a fellow Democrat who appointed him, was on hand. About 300 people packed the Senate galleries and floor to watch, many of them friends, office staff members and legislators.

After administering the oath, the elder Six turned to the audience and said, "The new attorney general," followed by a loud round of applause. Standing nearby were two former attorneys general, Bob Stephan and Robert Londerholm, and former Gov. John Anderson, who also served as attorney general.

Six will fill the remaining three years of Morrison's term, and Democrats expect him to seek a full term in 2010.

"I'm sure the attorney general is a nice man and a good attorney, but he has a long way to go because of what his party has done to that office," said Christian Morgan, the state Republican Party's executive director.

Morrison acknowledged in December that he'd had an extramarital affair with a former subordinate but denied her allegations of engaging in professional misconduct during their relationship.

Six's new job comes with a pay cut of nearly $22,000: the salary for a district court judge is $118,297, compared to $96,489 for the attorney general. But he's said he took a pay cut as big or bigger when he went from private practice to the bench.

Sebelius passed over prosecutors, former prosecutors and better-known political figures in appointing Six, a 42-year-old Douglas County judge. She described him as having strong legal skills and "a great personal record."

Stephan, who's also a former district judge, said Kansans may believe the attorney general mostly prosecutes crime, but the office is "a big law firm." He said Six's experiences as a judge and civil trial attorney will serve him well.

"It is the civil side that is the biggest side," Stephan said.

Six received his law degree from the University of Kansas in 1993 and then served as a clerk for Judge Deanell Tacha of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

He cited Tacha as one of the people influential in his life, along with his parents and his pastor in Lawrence.

His father said he expects his son to encounter criticism as attorney general but, "His eyes are open."

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